New PRS Series - Itīs USA and mid priced!

[Kiichi]

Just saw this come up in a newsletter: http://www.guitarworld.com/prs-guitars-introduces-s2-series-maryland-made-mid-priced-solidbody-electric-models#slide-2
Basecally there is a new series made in Maryland. USA made and still only like 1,2k$ a piece. Sounds very tempting.
Wonder how good they actually turn out to be. Proabably blow most things in that price range clean out of the water I suspect.

Also there is something about that Starla I like...

What do you guys think of this?

[Philly Q]

They're interesting, but I'm just a little bit suspicious as to what corners they've cut to make them available at this price.....

For example, it would be a shame to see PRS drop their policy of all US guitars having one-piece mahogany bodies.

The S2 Mira looks pretty cool, and 22 frets is a great new development.... shame the scratchplate is so utterly hideous.  And I'm a bit puzzled how the S2 Starla seems to be pretty much identical to a "real" Starla apart from the body contouring and the tuners.  Maybe they're dropping the full-price Starla?

[Philly Q]

........... Oh $%&#ing hell, I might as well just pre-order an S2 Mira now.  I'm bound to end up buying one eventually.  Scratchplates can be replaced or modified.   :x  :roll:  :lol:

[Kiichi]

And we do have the first victim^^

I hope the way they achieve the lower price is going down a bit on wood and hardware quality compared to the high end USA, while still being above the SE version. Same with the craftsmenship involved. Since its USA better then the SE, but not as much effort as the high end USA.
The potential for a great middle ground is certainly there I think, but details would be important.

[Twinfan]

I'm a PRS fan as everyone knows, but I think they've dropped the ball here.  I've heard the necks are made from multiple pieces - scarf jointed headstocks and built up heels.  Based on that, I think bodies will be multi-piece too.  The Bigsby on the Starla is a licensed version, not the real McCoy.  Fingerboards are fitted to the neck with frets pre-installed for speed of assembly.

I think they're responding to the US guys who won't buy an import guitar, but I think a Korean SE will be a better overall product.  Especially after a refret with jumbos.

[Kiichi]

Interresting to hear from our resident PRS expert. The way you make it sound it is far less appealing.

I wonder how they ultimatly come out sound and playability wise. Could still be good after all. I am still gonna assume they will end up being better than the SE, but the question is are they better enough (what horrible english).

With PRS delivering such quality I just canīt quite imagine that these will be a ball dropped, but of course it could be.

[Slartibartfarst42]

Based on a cursory look at those details and Twinfan's comments, I don't immediately see why I'd spend more money on this than an SE version. In some respects it reminds me of when I bought my Jackson. One of the reasons I went for it was that it was made in Japan and the build quality of Japanese instruments is excellent so I suppose these S2 guitars are equivalent to a Japanese Jackson, Ibanez or ESP. They certainly sound like they will hit a similar price point. The trouble is that I'm now on my second Korean made PRS and any difference between them and a Japanese made guitar is extremely marginal at best; if it even exists at all! The devil is in the detail of course but I just can't immediately see why I'd spend hundreds of pounds more for an S2.

[dvorak]

Based on a cursory look at those details and Twinfan's comments, I don't immediately see why I'd spend more money on this than an SE version.

Because they are even prettier! :D

Man I'm gassing bad for a Custom to replace my SE CU24. I don't think it can be as bad as Twinfan says. I mean, the SE bodies are mostly made out of three pieces already.

Owning both SEs and USA built ones I must say that there are room for improvement over the SEs, even though they are very good. If they get almost as good as the current Mira/Starla line up, they will be very good indeed.

And the current Starla and Mira will be discontinued, just read it on the PRS site.

[Slartibartfarst42]

Prettier? I'm not so sure. They look much the same to me. I can't say I'm particularly bothered about the asymmetric beveled top and although I may be biased, I think the purple quilt SE CU24 I just bought is just as good looking if not better. If I could afford one, I'd buy a proper USA model as they're clearly incredible but I can't afford it and even if I could, I'm not at all convinced my meager ability would warrant the expense. The SE versions are superb for the money (Ģ600 for my new one) so the S2 models would need to be stunning to persuade me to part with almost twice the cash and I suspect that a lot of what I'd be paying for would be 'Made in USA' stamped on the back.

[dvorak]

Well, it's all in the eye of the beholder of course. The contours look very similar to the current Mira and Starla, and in my eyes they are much more defined than the contoured SE. The thing with the US built ones are in the details, you really notice it when holding/playing one. After playing the US ones the SEs feels cheaper. I mean, don't get me wrong, I love the SEs (I have two myself). And of course the would feel cheaper since they are about 1/4-1/3 of the price. It's just that I feel that there is quite a gap, and if these are closer to the US models they will be very nice guitars indeed.

Personally I couldn't care less were a guitar is built, but as it is now, the US factory produces some really nice guitars. If they can rub off some of that magic onto these, I could see myself getting one in the future. A single cut model of these would be killer!

So to summarize: The SEs are killer guitars for the money, they really are. But there is quite a gap to the US ones, and the S2 models will probably be great guitars for the money too.


Twinfan: Just read on the PRS site that the bodies are one piece. Didn't say anything about how they make the necks though...

[Philly Q]

I'm a PRS fan as everyone knows, but I think they've dropped the ball here.  I've heard the necks are made from multiple pieces - scarf jointed headstocks and built up heels.  Based on that, I think bodies will be multi-piece too.  The Bigsby on the Starla is a licensed version, not the real McCoy.  Fingerboards are fitted to the neck with frets pre-installed for speed of assembly.

I think they're responding to the US guys who won't buy an import guitar, but I think a Korean SE will be a better overall product.  Especially after a refret with jumbos.

Hmm, thanks to the wisdom of Twinfan I am cancelling that hypothetical pre-order.... for now.  :|  :lol:

And I do still have my Mira X.  :)

I can see the logic of making a mid-price guitar to expand your market and appeal to the Ed Roman types who regard "import" as a dirty word..... but PRS are known for not skimping on quality, not cutting corners.  It may be a successful move for them, but I think it weakens the brand image a little.

[Kiichi]

I can see the logic of making a mid-price guitar to expand your market and appeal to the Ed Roman types who regard "import" as a dirty word..... but PRS are known for not skimping on quality, not cutting corners.  It may be a successful move for them, but I think it weakens the brand image a little.

I personally donīt see how it weakens the brand image. If you cut out the assumption that it is the the Ed Roman types, which is just that, an assumption far as we know, what you are left with is putting in a middle ground in their range. Cause you gotta admit that the jump from the SE to the USA is pretty steep in term of price.
To put something in the middle there, which is after all still quite a bit up from the SEs, but far away from the USA just seems to make sense.

Personally I donīt see how this hurts the brand. Still I might be missing something as I donīt know that much about PRS.

All I see is something like an amp maker doing some great sounding cheap solid state / hybrid amps from asia and boutique type tube amps from the US. Now they wanne add in a medium priced all tube variant in the middle and are choosing the US as the manufacturing base.

The only hangup I can see there is that they chose they US as the location, but this may simply be down to being able ensure quality, or maybe the woods they wanne use are easier to ship there. Maybe it is just so they can say made in the US. Canīt really know, but if the product is able to speak for itself this canīt possibly hurt them, but might even strenthen them, no?

[Philly Q]

You make some perfectly valid points there.  When I say it may weaken the brand image, I mean it totally from a personal perspective.  And note that I say "the brand image", not "the brand" - financially, it may be an absolute winner.

I just think they risk putting themselves in the same position as Gibson, where a lot of people (a minority, but a large minority) are quite critical of the standard US production guitars and would only consider buying Custom Shop models (but despite that, of course, the bulk of the business is in those standard production guitars).

Maybe that's exactly what they want.  As I say, it's just my own perspective.

[Kiichi]

Oh I misread your comment then, I thought you were meaning in the general eye of the public.
Now what you are saying makes perfect sense, especially with the Gibson analogy.

On the count of Gibson though, from what I heard the bad rep is a lot about the quality, which was not fitting the price. The standard Gibsons I tried were not up to the price too. Most of the recent comments about them I got in the last 2-3 years were on the bad side. That is a problem I donīt expect PRS having.

[Philly Q]

Time will tell, I guess! 

I must confess on the Gibson front I have joined the ranks of the Custom Shop snobs.  The US production models can be very hit-or-miss, the workmanship can be downright shoddy.... but having said that, if I wanted a cheap knockabout guitar I would still 100% pick a ropey Gibson Melody Maker over some shiny Korean model.  Not because of the name, but because of the vibe.

I'm not being very consistent in my arguments.... it's late.  Time to sleep.